Rotor



Jan. 4, 1949.

J. H. wEssEL. 2,458,041

ROTOR Filed July 14, 1945 IN VEN To? JOHN H. Wissel.

BY Hnpp/s, Kum/4J Fos rsp cHqpQ/s f an adjacent vane.'

l Patented Jan. 4, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFicE Application July 14,'1o45. sei-iai No. 605,029

:l My invention relates in general toa rotor for rotary, or centrifugal blowers and, more spe-y ciilcally, to the structure and fabrication of a vane which is adapted for` assembly with similar vanes to provide the rotor. Forthc purpose of disclosing the invention-the present specification relates to an application of my fundamental concepts to a cylindrical rotor wherein the longitudinal axes ofthe varies are parallel to the longitudinal axis of the rotor.

One of the primary objectives of my invention is the provision of a rotor which includes a plurality of adjacent, individual vanes, each vane being adapted for interlocking engagement with I vprefer to effect a realization of this objective by providing each vane with a flange portion adjacent each end thereof, the

flange `portions of each vane preferably being4 formed integrally therewith and being adapted for interlocking engagement with an adjacent vane. v

l Conventional rotors employing individual vanes are ordinarily assembled by individually securing each vane to suitable supporting members, the supporting members frequently being annular rims, for example. Assembly of the various com- 9 Claims. (CL 230v-134) a vane having flange portions with base and end sections which are displaced relative to each other, the vane having an opening therethrough ponent-s of such conventional rotors also necessitates individually positioning each vane rela- .tive to the supporting members. My invention materially facilitates assembly operations by providing for interlocked assembly of the vanes prior to securing the vanes to the supporting members, the entire vane assembly being securabie to the supporting members as a single unit.

Another; primary objective of my invention is the provision ofl a vane 'having ilange portions which include base sections adjacent the vane and end, or locking sections, -adjacent the base sections, the end sections being adapted for engagement with an adjacent vane to interlock the vanes. I prefer t9 employ flange portions where in the end sections are displaced relative to the base sections, or relative to portions thereof, to permit each end section of onevane to accommodate the corresponding base section of an adjacent vane.

An objective of my invention in connection with one embodiment thereof is the provision oi a vane having flange portions with base and end sections which are displaced relative to each other, each base section having an opening therethrough which is adapted for the reception of a locking projection on an end section of an adjacent vane to interlock the vane.

An objective of my invention in connection with another embodiment thereof is the provision ci adjacent each end thereof and substantially adjacent each flange portion, each of the openings 'being adapted to receive an end section' of an adjacent vane to lock the vanes together.

The foregoing and various other advantages and objectives of my invention may be realized by means of the embodiments shown lin the accompanying drawing, which is for illustrative `purposes only, wherein:

Fig. l lism. perspective view of a rotor which embodies the fundamental concepts of my invention; 4

, Fig. 2 is a plan view -of a partially completed vaneand illustrates various steps involved in the fabrication thereof;`

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary transverse sectional view taken as indicated byy thebroken line 3-3 but illustrates the embodiment' of my invention which includes the vane shown in Fig. 5; and

Fig.v 'I' is a sectional view taken along the line 1--1 of Fig. 6. f

The rotor includes a vane assembly which is indicated generally by the numeral lil, the vane assembly I0 being secured to annular rims il.

-The rims Il are secured to spiders I2 which include hubs i1, the latter being adapted for rotatably mounting the rotor in the conventional manner.

Referring particularly to Figs.y 2 through 4,`

the vane assembly i0 includes a plurality of ad jacent vanes vIl which are interlocked in a manner that will be described in detail hereinafter. As best shown in Fig. 2, the vane Il may be cut from a plane member, such as sheet metal, and is provided with a ilange portion I6 adjacent each end il thereof, only one ,flange portion I 6 and vane end I1 having been shown since the vane I4 is symmetrical.

The flange portion I8 .isgpreferably formed integrally-with the vane il and includes a base section Il adjacent the vane Il andan end, or

.locking section I9, adjacent the base section iii.`

The base section i8 is provided with an opening ,ccaosi 3 il therethroughandtheendsection llispmvided with a locking projection 22 thereon, the endsection Ilhavingbeencuttodenethelockingprojection 22 whichisthenbentreiativetothe endsection Ilasbestshowninl'ig.4.

Thevane Misbenttoprovidethearcuate cross-sectional conilguration thereof which is bestshowninFlg.3andtheilangeportion Ilis bent substantially along the line A--A of Pig. 2 until the ilange portion Il is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis B-B ci the vane Il. A portion 23`of the base section il adjacent the opening 2| is bent relative to the remainder thereof so that the end section is displaced relative to the base section Il in a direction which is substantially parallel to the longitudinai axis n n.

Por convenience in describing the assembly of the vane Il with an adjacent vane which is identical thereto, the adjacent vane and the corresponding components thereof shall be designated by the addition of the letter a to the identifying numerals used to indicate the vane il and the components thereof. As best shown in Fig.V 4, the vane il is inserted between the end sections isa of the vane lla until the locking projections 22a are inserted into and engage the peripheries oi the openings 2| in the base sections I! of the vane il. the resilience oi the ilange portions lia tending to maintain the engagement. The ends i1 oi the vane il also abut edges 24a of the base section Ila of the vane 'ila as best shown in Fig. 3

the curvature and orientation of the edges 14a I being such that the longitudinal axes oi' the varies I4 and Ma intersect a circular line C-C. Additional vanes Hb, llc, etc. may be assembled in a similar manner to provide the vane assembly i0. 'Ihe entire vane assembly il may then be attached to the annular rims Il by riveting or welding the ilange portions I6, lia, etc. thereto. although it will be understood that any other suitable attachment means may be employed as is well known in the art.

The embodiment of my invention which is illustrated in Figs. 5 to 7, inclusive, is similar to the embodiment which was described previously and includes vanes which shall be designated by the numeral H4. Similarly, the components oi the vane III shall be designated by the numerals which diiler from the identifying numerals of the corresponding components of the vane il by the addition of the numeral "100 thereto.

As best shown in Fig. 5, the vane IM includesr an integral ilange portion IIS adjacent each end H1 thereof, only one end H1 having been shown since the vane III is symmetrical. The flange portion IIB includes a base section Ill adjacent the vane III and an end, or locking section H9, adjacent the base section ill. The vane ill is provided with an opening I2i therethrough adjacent the end lil thereof and substantiallyr adjacent the llange portion Ill. The end sectiai I Il is provided with lateral locking projections |22 thereon and is displaced relative to the base sectionIlIasbestshowninFig.7.

The cross-sectional arcuation oi' the vane lil is similar to that of the vane` il and the -ilange portion IIB is bent substantiallyalong theline D-D until substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis E-E oi the vane lll.

Thevane III maybeasseinbled withanidentical adjacent vane which shall be d lila, thecomponentsoithevane Hlabeingted by the addition oi the letter 01" to the numerals which identify corresponding components ci the vane IM. As best shown in Fig. 7. the end sections IISaoi the vane lila are insertedinto the openings III in the vane l il, the displacement of the end sections I I9a being adapted to accommodate the base sections H8 ot the vane ill. The locking projections lila on the end sections lita engage the periphery of the openings ill to retain the end sections il9a therein, thus interlocking the vanes III and Illa. The vane lila is provided with base sections llaa having edges Illa which are adapted to abut the ends lll oi the vane IH as best shown in Fig. 6, the curvature and orientation of the edges I2Ia being such that the vanes H4 and Illa are disposed along a circular line F-F. V.Additional identical vanes (not shown) may be added in a similar manner to provide a vane assembly H0 which may then be attached to rims lli in any suitable manner.

If desired, the vanes I4 and Ill may be formed by a stamping operation, or operations, as is well known in the art. The individual vanes il and III may be assembled easily and rapidly in the manner described to provide interlccked vane assemblies I 0 and H0, respectively, which may then be secured to suitable supporting members such as the annular rims Il and l I i, respectively. My invention avoids any necessity for individually positioning vanes relative to supporting members and thereby materially accelerates assembly operations.

Although I have herein described various speciilc embodiments of my invention,` I do not intend to be limited to the specific disclosures contained herein since various changes, modifications and substitutions may bc incorporated in the specic embodiments without departing from the spirit of the invention as deilned by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention: i

1. A'vane for a rotor, said vane having a flange portion formed integrally therewith adjacent each end thereof, each of said flange portions including, a base section adjacent said vane and an end section adjacent said base section, each oi' said base sections having an opening therethrough and each of said end sections having a locking projection thereon, said locking projections being located in positions complementary to said openings, respectively.

2. A vane for a rotor, said vane having a flange portion formed integrally therewith adjacent each end thereof, each oi said ilange portions including a base section adjacent said vane and an end section adjacent said base section. said vane having an opening therethrough adjacent each end thereof, said openings being substantially adjacent said flange portions and being complementary to said end sections, respectively.

3. A rotor for a rotary blower including a plurality of adjacent vanes, each oi said vanes having a ange portion formed integrally therewith adjacent each end thereof, each of said flange portions of each vane including a base section adjacent said vane and an end section adjacent said base section, each of said base sections having an opening therethrough, and each o! said end sections of one vane being adapted for engagement with one of said openingsln `said base sections oi an adjacent vane to interlock said vanes.

4. A rotor for a rotary blower including a plurality of adjacent vanes, each oi said vancs having a ange portion formed integrally therewith adjacent each end thereof, each of said ilange portions of each vane including a base section adjacent said vane and an end section adjacent said base section, each of said base sections having an opening therethrough, and each of said end sections having a locking projection thereon, each of said locking projections on said end sections offone vane being adapted for insertion into one of said openings in said base section Vof an adjacent vane to interlock said vanes.

5. A rotor for a rotary blower including a plurality of adjacent vanes, each of said vanes having a flange port/ion formed integrally therewith adjacent each end thereof, each of said flange portions of each vane including a base section adjacent said vane and an end section adjacent said base section, and each of said vanes having an opening therethrough adjacent each end thereof, said openings being substantially adjacent said flange portions, and each of said end sections of one vane being adapted for insertion into one of said openings in an adjacent vane to interlock said vanes.

6. A rotor providing an axis of rotation and including a plurality of vanes extending parallel to said axis, each of said vanes being provided with an opening and being provided with a locking element, said locking element of each of said vanes being insertable into said opening in another of said vanes to interlock said vanes.

7. A rotor including a plurality of circumferentially spaced, longitudinally extending vanes each of which is provided with an opening adjacent each end thereof and each of which is provided with a transversely extending locking projection adjacent each end thereof, said locking' projections of each vane being disposed in the openings in anadjacent vane to interlock'said vanes.

8. A vane of arcuate cross section having a ilange extending transversely therefrom, said flange having an arcuate edge spaced from and substantially parallel to said vane, said vane having an opening therein and said flange having a locking projection thereon located in a position complementary to said opening, the width of said flange being less than the width of said vane.

9. A rotor including a plurality of circumferentially spaced, longitudinal vanes of arcuatel cross section, each of said vanes` being provided with an opening and being provided with a transverse ange, each of said iianges being provided with a locking projection and being provided with an arcuate edge which is spaced from and is substantially parallel to the corresponding vane, each of said arcuate ledges engaging an adjacent vane to establish a predetermined spacing between said vanes, and each of said locking projections being disposed in the opening in an adjacent vane' to interlock said vanes.

JOHN H. WESSEL.

mirnrtlnvci:s CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:`

UNITED STATES PATENTS Sweden June 20, 1896 

